September 2023
Gettin Ready to Decorate for the Holidays
09/30/23 09:07 AM
Getting Ready to Decorate for the Holidays
Many of us like to decorate our homes to celebrate the various holidays through out the year. It is a way we bring the spirit of the season into our homes. Some holidays can be more elaborate than others based on personal preference. When September comes to a close, many start thinking about decorating for Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas. It can be quite overwhelming if you do not have a basic strategy in place. Below you will see some decorating considerations that can be useful for any season or holiday. Hopefully it can make your life a little less stressful. If you have a good consideration that should be added to the list, please do not hesitate to leave send me a message. I am a firm believer in healthy collaboration.
Budget
I recommend starting with a holiday decorating with a budget in mind. All too often budget isn't the top consideration. When you have a budget, you can plan more efficiently and it does not create a hardship to the family budget. It is very easy to get carried away with the plethora of decor available to us in today's world.
Each holiday has its own unique decorations. You may decorate differently for Halloween than you do for Christmas
Creating a budget for decorating
- List Areas you want to decorate
- Start with the most important areas first then if the budget allows you can add extra rooms or areas of the home.
- Porch or Front door, entry way, formal living room, family room or great room, kitchen, dining room, guest bathroom(s), guest bedroom(s), main bedroom, office, patio etc. A Christmas tree can have its own separate budget.
- Shop before buying. Online stores, mail order catalogs make it easy to gauge costs of various products.
- How much of your budget do you want to spend for each area you have listed?
- Consider what decor items you already own, what you want to add to your collection or replace. What will it cost?
- Do you require help with decorating such as a decorating service to help hang lights. What will it cost?
- Do you like to have your home cleaned before the putting up holiday decorations for a party you are hosting. What will it cost?
So where do you start?
Having a decorating theme is important. Without a theme you may find your decorations may not mix and match for that nice look you are after. Don't leave decorating as an after thought buy just buying what ever you see because it looks great in the shop vignette. Those vignettes are set up to be inspirational but if only purchasing a single item that doesn't coordinate with what you have at home is not very cost effective and in some cases can be a waste of money if it can't be used. Example you have a collection of vintage colorful Santas you have used for years and on an impulse you purchase a fairy in white and gold. How will you incorporate that beautiful delicate fairy into your vintage old world Santa theme? Color schemes are a big one to be on the watch as well. Let say for years you have collected copper and gold Christmas ornaments and decorations and this year you have fallen in love with bright lime green, ruby red and snowy white decor. If planning to change your theme to the bright lime, green and red, what will you do with the old decorations, and does the new theme fit within your budget?
Social media and printed magazines can be great sources for inspiration. Check out platforms such as Pinterest, Instagram, Tic Tock and in some case HOUZZ to provide inspiration for current trends. Keep in mind, trending items maybe be much easier to find in shops and online. My personal favorite is Pinterest because it allows me to create a board and pin images and save links all in one location.
If you prefer a more custom and personal tool, I have found Notebook within Microsoft to be quite useful. I love the way you can create a Notebook and have tabs just like a physical notebook with indexes where I can past images, add links and make my own notes. Because it is all digital, you always have it handy whether it be on you desktop or saved to cloud for easy phone access. If you do not have Notebook, you can simply create a file folder on your desk top and save your inspiration ideas to that folder. You can also place your budget journal, theme concepts, guest lists etc for easy retrieval.
Theme Scheme
A theme will help you stay on track with purchases and avoid making costly mistakes with items that really do not fit with what you already own or the new theme you are creating. A theme can change from year to year. For example this Halloween your theme maybe Candy Corn and last year it is was all about Witches or last year you had a traditional orange rust Thanksgiving theme and this year you want to go natural boho. There are no rules when it comes to selecting a theme. Your budget will dictate feasibility. As I mentioned before, current trends tend to be more cost effective (supply and demand) and easier to find than unique quirky specialty themes.
Time is Precious
Planning your time is important, it seems the closer to the holiday, the more busy we become. Set aside enough time to decorate the way you want things to look. It is natural if you find you need to move things around from room to room or add things along the way. Planning what rooms you want to decorate and general idea how they will look when finished is a big part of the planning process. You want to avoid the last minute run to purchase something you saw on line only to find out it is sold out or will not arrive in time.
Planning your time wisely also allows you to actually "enjoy" your beautiful decorations for a period of time. I have been caught up in the holiday rush where it feels like when I finally got all my decorating completed it was time to take it all down.
Inventory Control
One In and One Out schedule helps to manage an over abundance of holiday decorations. If you only collect without ever getting rid of something it can be overwhelming. I constantly remind myself "don't let the stuff own you". Keep your favorite items or ones that are sentimental so they can be put on display when the holiday rolls around again. Remove items from your collection you know you won't be using again. You can gift them to someone who will love them, sell or consider donating to a local charity that would love something new to decorate their dining room or gathering room. Care Centers and Nursing homes come to mind. How about sharing a little joy with the elderly who may not have the room or means to decorate. Of course make sure to toss anything that is broken, stained or yellowed.
Areas to Decorate?
There are no hard fast rules here. As a designer I have seen clients who decorate each and every room of their homes for the Christmas while others appreciate a more minimalistic approach and perhaps hang a beautiful but elegant wreath on the front door and cooridinating Christmas Tree in the main living area. We all have spots in our homes that are a naturally conducive for decorations such as a fireplace mantle, entry table and of course the front door. Let you personal style come into play, make it your own and alway consider what brings you joy.
Storage
- Storage is something to consider before you buy as well. How much available space do you have? Consider storage "before" buying that life sized hand painted ceramic soldier you think may look amazing by your door. Or the space to store 5 trees because you want to have one tree for various rooms in the house?
- If you live in a home that has a basement storage you are fortunate but, what do you do if you live in a single story ranch style home? Do you have extra closet space in a bedroom or is there some space in the garage? What about an apartment with little to no storage at all?
- Climate is another factor when you consider storage as well. Areas of the country that are wet and have high humidity can be problematic for decorations made out of paper or wood, areas that see low winter temperatures can increase risks of breakage of plastics. Dry areas like the Southwest part of the US have heat challenges to contend with and can do a number on plastic, glue and deep colored items.
- Wreaths are what I do. When purchasing a wreath/swag from Su Casa Encantada you will receive it in a box that has been selected for you to store your wreath after the holiday has come and gone.
- Always store you items properly so you can enjoy for seasons to come. Wrap all breakables carefully with tissue paper or bubble wrap if needed.
- Some items can bleed if exposed to colored papers. Wax and plastics can melt during hot summer storage so keep those items indoors or in climate controlled environments.
- Label properly as it makes locating so much easier for the next year
- Be careful not to overload containers that are too heavy to lift. EX buying one giant red bin for all Christmas decoration - too heavy to lift and difficult to find storage spot.
Have fun planning for your holiday decorating!